Trishula, Dragon Of The Ice Barrier (HA04-EN060)

Card:  HA04-EN060
Card Name:  Trishula, Dragon Of The Ice Barrier
Attribute:  Water
Level/Rank:  9
Type:  Dragon/Synchro/Effect
ATK:  2700
DEF:  2000

Card Text:
1 Tuner + 2 or more non-Tuner monsters
When this card is Synchro Summoned, you can activate this effect to remove from play up to one card each from your opponent's hand, field and Graveyard.  (The card in the hand is chosen at random.)

Personal Comment:
Trishula, Dragon Of The Ice Barrier is a top tier card and the financial cost to own her reflects it (currently going for about $50).  Her effect is absolutely devastating to an opponent.  When she hits the playing field you automatically gain an advantage by removing the most powerful monster your opponent controls.  On top of that you get to remove from play a card in their Graveyard (which you also get to specifically choose) and one random card from their hand.  Any strategy or momentum that they had is completely gone.  With such a great effect it is necessary to build a deck specifically around her to take full advantage of it.  While the summoning requirement is rather difficult, it definitely isn't impossible.  The effort to bring her into play is will be well worth it.  With the ability to turn a duel around or to end it the moment she is summoned, Trishula is one of the best dueling card available.  A near perfect card.

Personal Rating:
Artwork - 9/10
Power - 9/10
Easy To Play - 7/10
Collectable - 10/10
Overall Score - 8.75/10

Gungnir, Dragon Of The Ice Barrier (HA03-EN030)

Card:  HA03-EN030
Card Name:  Gungnir, Dragon Of The Ice Barrier
Attribute:  Water
Level/Rank:  7
Type:  Dragon/Synchro/Effect
ATK:  2500
DEF:  1700

Card Text:
1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner WATER monsters
Once per turn, you can discard up to 2 cards to the Graveyard to select the same number of cards your opponent controls.  Destroy the selected cards.

Personal Comment:
Gungnir is a great "Ice Barrier" card but still comes up short when compared to Trishula or Brionac due to one simple requirement.  In order to Synchro Summon this card easily your deck has to be built around WATER monsters (there aren't many great WATER monsters to choose from).  Otherwise, getting Gungnir onto the playing field can be a real chore if you only have a few WATER monsters in your deck.  However, once in play, this card's effect is one of the best in the game.  The ability to destroy 2 of your opponent's card (by discarding 2 of your own cards) per turn is a game changer.  Let me emphasize "PER TURN".  If your opponent isn't able to remove Gungnir from play quickly it will only get worse for them as the duel goes on.  So if you are looking to test your dueling skills, try building a WATER deck around this card.  If you're successful it will be a deck that can compete against some of the best.  But it isn't for the novice.

In addition to the "Ice Barrier" support cards, here are some WATER cards to consider:
Blizzard Dragon (Lv 4, 1800 ATK, 1000 DEF)
Dragon Ice (Lv 5, 1800 ATK, 2200 DEF)
Hydrogeddon (Lv 4, 1600 ATK, 1000 DEF)

Personal Rating:
Artwork - 7/10
Power - 8/10
Easy To Play - 6/10
Collectable - 7/10
Overall Score - 7/10